Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-03-03
A QUESTION OF HONOR.
FARMER TILLMAN ENLlVENS
THE HOUSE,

THE HOUSE,
The veracIty of Messrs Long and Reed
Impugned by the Gentleman from TIL.
Pain etto State--Mr. Dougherty also
Takes Rap at the South CaroliuiAn,
WASHINGTON, March 2.-ln the Hou sc
to-day MIR. Grigg, OF Virginia, submitted
the conference report on the bill com.
pensating Albert II. Emery for the con.
struction of an iron and steel testing ma.
chine for the United States. The bill az
1t passed the Senate appropriated $780,.
600, This sum the House reduced tc
$4,000. The conference report fixed the
amount at 100000.
MIR. Springer opposed the report and
characterized the claim as iniquitous,
Mr.. Gallinger, of New Hampshire.
vigorously defended ii, and contended
That toe claim was JusU one.
Mr.. TIiImaa, Of South Carolina, rose tr
oppose the bill, and his vigorous remarks
created great deal OF excitement and
confusion. He denounced the claim rs
the most fraudulent and unjust one
which had ever been presented to Con.
gress. Ii it passed it would show that
a claim, in order to be successful had only
to be old, fraudulent aud large enough to
divide, and TO be pushed with shameless,
persistent audacity. When he said di
Aide he did not mean divide with his col
leagues here, but with witnesses, claim
agents, attorneys aud eX-members. But
ne would charge his colleagues with lazi-
ness laughter and with not being will
ins To Investi9 ate fraudulent claims.
ACQUISITION OF vERACITY.
Ha rnif.4rufnd fhn az n fon 1udn IN
Mr., Springer, that when the bill was un.
der consideration in the House two gentle
men on the Republican side, great friends
Of tine claimant, had come to him and said
that IL he would permit the bill to 20
through, appropriatlng $63, 900, the claim
ant would be satisfied. 1t was on that
condition that he had refraiDed from fur
ther hlibustering against the bill. Those
two gem lemen were Messrs. Long, of
Massachusetts, and Reed, of Maine.
II desire to state" interrupted Mr..
Reed, walking down the aisle aud facing
Mr.. Tlllman, "tnat ] never made any
such agreement with the gentleman from
south Carolina"
''Then 1t is question Of veracity,"
cried Mr.. Iillman.
II never thought OF such an agree
ment," reiterated Mr.. Reed. snow Gap
pealing to the House) whom do you be-
lievew
Ibid you not cay that you would use
your lnfluencew persisted Mr.. Tillman.
"No," replied Mr., Reed, emphatically,
81 say you did," exclaimed Mr.. TIL
maa.
"And the gentleman is as much mis-
taken about that as he is in his other
phIlippics," retorted Mr.. Reed. 'The
fact is, he is wild on this subject"
While this cOlloquy was in progress
members of the House altered around
the two gentlemen and several imDr0mptu
but excited disputes arose among them
upon the merits OF the case.
Mr.. LONGS VERSION.
Mr.. Long stated that he had gone to the
gentleman from South Carolina and urged
him TO allow the passage OF the bill. The
gentleman had said that he would con-
sent to the passage Of bill appropriate
ing $63, 600 If the applicant would be con-
tent. He Mr.. Long) did not state to the
gentleman that that would be acceptable
TO the claimant. He had no such author
ity. He may have conveyed the impress
sion that he would be glad to have the
matter settled at $1,000, but he had no
authority from the claimant, and he had
never stated TO the gentleman that that
sum would be acceptable TO the claimant.
Mr.. Tlilman-Did you not say you
would use your Inhuence with him to
make him accepuit?
Mr.. Long-I am sure | did not say
would use my influence. ] did say
would be very glad to have him accept it
rather than get nothing, and there stand
to-day.
Mr. Trlgg defended the bill and repudi-
ate thed assertion that there was fraud
in it.
A TERROR TO LOBBYISTS.
Mr.. Sowden, of Pennsy lvania, inquired
IL the bill was not pressed by lobbyists.
81 know nothing about l0bbyIsts,' re-
spOnded Mr.. Trigg. Lobbyists don't
approach me-" Loud laughter and ap-
plause.
MIR. Dougherty said that in his remarks
the gentleman from South Carolina had
made a general charge that thesmembers
of the Committee on Claims were lazy.
He wished to say, in reply, that be had
served his constituents with as much in
dustry, ii not as much ability, as the gen.
tleman had served bis, and If he had not
served them with more, ''6od help his
constituents" Laughter and applause. !
The gentleman from South Carolina had
alluded to a certain class of people who
were understood to be plenty around
Washington, called lobbyists. No lobby
lists had ever approached him, and per-
hans the reason that the gentlemen IRON
Illinois and South Carolina (Messrs.
Springer and Tillman) we're so well &C.
quainted with them, was because they
had more to do with them than he Mr..
DOu0hprtV1 ever eXDectpd 70 have